Clerkship Class Year Question Forum

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Clerkship Class Year Question

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Aug 31, 2020 6:47 pm

Trying to not give too much information.
But has anyone successfully negotiated increasing the clear year credit upon joining a firm post clerkship? For example, you clerk for two years but they offer to give you credit for only one and you were able to insist both years be covered.
Is it critical to have another offer in hand with your desired year before making the ask?

Also, for people who returned to their original firm post clerking, did you attempt to negotiate class year before you completed clerking? And was it successful? I've heard of people doing that but was not sure if it's true.

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Re: Clerkship Class Year Question

Post by Pneumonia » Mon Aug 31, 2020 10:24 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Mon Aug 31, 2020 6:47 pm
Trying to not give too much information.
But has anyone successfully negotiated increasing the clear year credit upon joining a firm post clerkship? For example, you clerk for two years but they offer to give you credit for only one and you were able to insist both years be covered.
Is it critical to have another offer in hand with your desired year before making the ask?

Also, for people who returned to their original firm post clerking, did you attempt to negotiate class year before you completed clerking? And was it successful? I've heard of people doing that but was not sure if it's true.
One year is typical, even for several years of clerkships. Before you push too hard for two, consider whether it will be worth it in the long run. You will be compared to your peers as part of the up or out model. Come year 5, will the extra class year hurt you? You will only be three years into biglaw, whereas many of your peers will be 5. What about for business development purposes? Whether your goal is partner or simply to stay in biglaw for as long as possible before getting pushed out, the extra class year comes with costs. The only time it makes sense is if you want the extra dollars but only expect to be at the firm for two or three years.

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